


Life Support

by Callaeidae3



Series: Voltron Oneshots [3]
Category: Voltron: Legendary Defender
Genre: Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Gen, Hospitals, Hurt Keith (Voltron), Post Season 7, Recovery, Rent References
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2018-11-16
Updated: 2018-11-16
Packaged: 2019-08-24 09:30:24
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 677
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/16637342
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Callaeidae3/pseuds/Callaeidae3
Summary: Shiro and Krolia wait for Keith to wake up and Shiro sings RENT.





	Life Support

**Author's Note:**

  * For [lechaton17](https://archiveofourown.org/users/lechaton17/gifts).



> Happry Birthday!! :)

There’s a few hours left before Shiro’s due to give his speech, so he makes his way back to Keith’s hospital room. He’s not surprised to see Krolia already there. Kolivan will probably be up soon, too, after he’s finished updating the Garrison’s database with Sam downstairs.

Krolia doesn’t take her eyes of her son when Shiro slides the door open. It’s hard to read what she’s thinking, she keeps her expression so well guarded.

As for Keith…

Shiro sits himself down on the bench by the windows. “How is he?”

“No change,” Krolia murmurs.

It’s been a couple of days since the others woke and Keith’s still showing no signs of coming around. He’s responsive, in the least, but has yet to regain consciousness and the concern is beginning to eat away at Shiro’s calm.

“That attack drained quite a bit out of him,” he says. “It took the ATLAS down, it was that powerful. Then when we finally got back up and running again, Voltron was being drained…straight from the Black Lion, too. I think that’s why - …Krolia?”

Krolia’s got a startlingly distant and frustrated gleam in her eyes.

“What’s…?”

She catches herself then, and tries to cover up the change in her expression. It doesn’t work that well since she’s still got her eyes fixed on Keith.

“I was thinking,” she says eventually, “about how different things could’ve been for him had I not left.”

Shiro’s heart sinks. “I often wonder that, too.”

Krolia glances at him, eyebrow raised.

“Kerberos. I left for space and I never came back.”

“Against your will.”

“Yes, it was against my will, but…” Shiro trails off, not really knowing how to the small sliver of guilt he still feels occasionally. “I never stopped thinking about Keith. I’d promised him I’d be back and then the next thing I know I’m fighting in a gladiator ring and there’s no way back to him and no way to let him know I’m not dead.” He grunts, adding, “Yet.”

Krolia hums. She takes Keith’s hand in hers and brushes her thumb over his knuckles.

“We saw visions while on the space whale,” she says. “I saw much of Keith’s past that left me…disappointed in myself. I can’t thank you enough for being there for him.”

Shiro offers her a sad smile. “It was nothing.”

She closes her eyes a moment and takes a deep breath in and out. “Do you ever regret going on that mission?”

“Kerberos?”

“Hmm.”

“No, not at all. I mean, it’s not like I don’t wonder what would’ve happened – how things could’ve been different had I not gone – but what I always come back to is that Voltron never would’ve happened if the Kerberos mission hadn’t gone south. The butterfly effect, you know?

“It sucks, it really does, that I…that _we_ had to go through everything we did, but…” A soft smile plays at his lips. “The universe has other plans sometimes. Y’know…reason says I should’ve died three years ago.”

Krolia frowns. “At… Kerberos?”

“I had a degenerative muscle disease,” Shiro says quietly. “It would’ve killed me but I guess Zarkon got around to doing so first.”

“And then the Black Lion saved you.”

He nods. “She did. She saved my consciousness and Keith saved my clone. That’s why I’m here now…”

Krolia is silent for a minute, brow creased. Then she ducks her head and averts her eyes.

“I regret leaving him,” she whispers.

The truth in those words rings out loud and clear. Shiro’s chest tightens, knowing all too well the hurt that’s associated with those words and yet not being able to think of anything helpful or comforting to say to her.

And so he sings.

“ _There is no future…there is no past….”_ Shiro smiles. “Thank God that moment wasn’t the last.”

Krolia listens quietly, listening to the words, so he continues.

“ _There’s only us._

_There’s only this._

_Forget regret or life is yours to miss._

_No other road._

_No other way._

_No day but today.”_

 

Keith’s fingers twitch.

 

 


End file.
